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Millions of years ago, the Upper Mississippi River flowed north and emptied into a big lake. Then came the Ice Age. From about 3 million to 10,000 years ago, the North American continent was repeatedly covered with ice as far south as the area around the Ohio River.
Toward the end of that very cold period, the climate began to warm. The glaciers slowly started melting, leaving behind the rock and soil they had carried. This material dammed up old river valleys, created the Great Lakes, and forced rivers to make new routes to the sea. The Mississippi found a new course southward. Today, areas that border the Mississippi are home to more than 12 million people.
Paul Bunyan Trail
These north woods were once filled with hardworking lumberjacks. They created the legend of Paul Bunyan and his companion, Babe the Blue Ox.
Lake Itasca
This is the source of the Mississippi. The name “Itasca” comes from combining parts of two Latin words—veritas caput—which in English translate as “true head.”
St. Paul
Railroads made St. Paul the ”Gateway to the Northwest.” A major port at the north end of commercial river traffic, St. Paul is where Scotch Tape was invented.
Minneapolis
Companies like Pillsbury and General Mills began and grew here, using the water power provided by the Mississippi to mill flour. Minneapolis is the home of the Pillsbury Doughboy.
St. Anthony Falls
The Mississippi River is very long, but it has only one natural waterfall, which is found here.
Red Wing
This city is named after Sioux chief Red Wing, who supposedly wore the red-dyed wings of a swan as his headdress. It is famous for its household pottery
Muscatine
This city was known as the Pearl Button Capital of the World because of the many button factories here in the late 1800s. The buttons were made from the shells of the pearly mussels found in the Mississippi.
La Crosse
This city was named after the game of lacrosse, which the French saw Native Americans playing there.
St. Louis
This city is the home of the Gateway Arch. It was built in 1965 to commemorate St. Louis’s historic role as the “Gateway to the West.” St. Louis was the outfitting point for exploring parties, fur-trading expeditions, and pioneers during westward expansion.
Harpers Ferry
Effigy Mounds National Monument contains prehistoric burial mounds that date back to 600 B.C. Many of these mounds are in the shape of a bird or bear. They are the legacy of mound-building Native American cultures.
Cape Girardeau
Cherokees crossed the Mississippi River just north of this city when they were on the Trail of Tears from 1838 to 1839. They had been driven out of their homes in Georgia and eastern Tennessee.
Helena
Tied to the river by cotton, soybeans, and rice, Helena’s farms average in the thousands of acres. The city is famous for the King Biscuit Blues Festival.
New Boston
When Abraham Lincoln worked as a surveyor, one of his jobs was plotting this town.
Hannibal
This was the boyhood home of author Mark Twain (born Samuel Clemens). Hannibal provided the inspiration for the setting of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer.
Vicksburg
The capture of Vicksburg by Union forces during the Civil War proved the military genius of General Ulysses S. Grant. It gave the Union control of the river north of the city.
Memphis
A major trading center for cotton and hardwood lumber, Memphis later became known as the home of the blues. It is also famous for being Elvis Presley’s hometown.
New Orleans
This city is the birthplace of jazz and also of musician Louis Armstrong. It is also the home of the annual Mardi Gras celebration. Its unique Cajun and Creole cultures are a blend of French, Spanish, African, and other heritages.
The Delta
This area, which extends south from Cairo, Illinois, is famous for its rich soil. It was home to many large cotton plantations.
Davenport
The first railroad bridge to span the Mississippi River was constructed here in 1856.
